Why did we head to Lake Superior first? When we hit the road on this full-time adventure, we started out in Kansas. I wasn’t able to wrap up my job until late June, so we were already into the throws of summer before we even started our travels. Spending the summer in the midwest was less than appealing. So, we did what all RVers always seem to do to escape the heat: (a) find a higher altitude; or (b) find a cooler latitude. In our case, we decided to go for Option B and headed north to the Great Lakes.
Lake Superior
Growing up on West Coast, I didn’t have any real appreciation for the Great Lakes before this trip. Sure, I’d seen Lake Michigan when flying in and out of O’Hare. But I’d never actually visited any of the Great Lakes. So, I had no appreciation how awesome Lake Superior would be when we got there. It literally bigger than all the other Great Lakes combined and contains 10% of the earth’s fresh surface water !
Lake Superior
The immense size of Lake Superior also means it is cold. I mean really, REALLY cold. This is not a lake where you are going for a dip beyond your ankles, even at the peak of summer. But, there are plenty of other activities to take part in while you visit.
Duluth
Our first encounter with Lake Superior was in Duluth. It’s essentially the gateway to the lake, nestled right into the crook between Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Finn with the anchor from the USS Duluth on the Lakewalk.
I’m not sure what I thought of Duluth would be like before we arrived. But, it’s probably safe to say, I imagined something from the movie Fargo. As it turns out, Duluth was a surprisingly pleasant city. With several microbreweries, including Fitger’s, Bent Paddle, and Canal Park – it’s was a definite must stop on our way up north. We tried beer from all three breweries, and let me tell you, Minnesotans know what they are doing with this whole craft beer thing. Plus, they not only sell growlers of their brews, but 32 oz. mini growlers! So, we we loved Duluth before we even hit the lake.
Why taste one, when you can have a flight?
Camping along Lake Superior
In deciding where to stay, we set out on part of the Lake Superior Circle Tour – a route that circumnavigates the entire lake on both US and Canadian sides. Highway 61 runs along the western shore of Lake Superior all the way from Duluth to the Canadian border, and there’s plenty of places to stay along the water.
We ended up at a private RV park near Temperance River State Park about halfway up the shore. This was the perfect jumping off point for numerous hikes on the Superior Hiking Trail. Click here for more on our adventures on the Superior Hiking Trail.
Our campground also had access to Lake Superior, which provided us with opportunities to walk along the water in the evenings. This was a major bonus, since one of Finn’s goals (and one of mine too, if I’m being completely honest) was to collect a rock from one of each of the Great Lakes this year.
Another highlight of our trip was trying the local fish. There are plenty of places to get fresh and smoked fish. Northern Minnesota, after all, where all the Scandanavians seemed to settle in the US. We even made it to a small town called Finland, and took the opportunity to embarrass Finn by making him stand out in front of the mural on their general store while we took dozens of pictures.
Finland. Population: 1 Finn. Doesn’t he look soooo happy to be standing on the side of the road?
Finally, we took in the picturesque Split Rock Lighthouse and learned a good deal about the the commercial shipping traffic on the Great Lakes. What’s really amazing it that they built this lighthouse by hoisting all the supplies up from the lake along this sheer cliff, since highway 61 and inland access didn’t exist at that time. It’s an amazing sight, which we had to polish off with a visit to Castle Danger Brewery, just a bit down the road.
Split Rock Lighthouse
All, in all, Lake Superior was a great way to start off this adventure.